Jury statement: A disturbing and comic reflection on obsession and self-loathing that delivers an unsettling experience for the viewer. What at first appears to be an interview with a reclusive animator develops into a mirthless sequence of humiliations and an exploration of the human condition in the spirit of Gogol. In an inventive and brilliant way the film shifts between fiction and documentary, claymation and live action, evoking feelings of both repulsion and compassion in the viewer. Brilliant.

Jury statement With great precision and truthfulness the film presents the story of the missed opportunity to free oneself from a repressing life situation. Within 14 minutes the director suggests a complex and believable small-town microcosm full of boredom and lack of ambition, racial and gender resentment. In combination with excellent acting it is exactly the detailed representation of a specific milieu that allows for a deeper understanding of a wider human bewilderment.

Sieng – Ngieb (Silence)

Sivaroj Kongsagul, Thailand 2007

Fiction, 17:45 mins, Thai with English ST

Jury statement: The film succeeds in a difficult task: its lightness of touch and its quiet images and sounds allows the viewer to experience the protagonist’s spiritual search in a sensual way.

Mompelaar (Mumbler)

Marc Roels & Wim Reygaert, Belgium 2007

Fiction, 22:00 mins, Dutch with English ST

Jury statement: The directors successfully counterpoint humour and horror, combined with religious references. They create an amusing and disturbing work like a ghost train through a fevered Flemish imagination.

Going to Sleep is Something Absolutely Certain in Life

Paolo Pennuti, Italy 2007

Documentary, 20:00 mins, Eenglish

Jury statement: In an uncompromising way the nightmarish footage and the vainly soothing voices of the film force the viewers to expose themselves to a process of contemplating collective as well as personal trauma.

Dockpojken (Puppet Boy)

Johannes Nyholm, Sweden 2008

Fiction, 26:36 mins, Swedish with English ST

Jury Statement: The jury found this the most surprising work. In the darkness of Kempinski the future becomes present. Time and space are rendered ambiguous. A true no-budget work posed between documentary and science fiction.

Sunshine State (Extended Forecast)

Christopher Harris, USA 2007

Experimental, 8:00 mins, English

Jury Statement: The biggest story ever told through a pinhole.

Super Smile

Effie Wu, Germany 2007

Experimental, 4:48 mins, without dialogue

Jury statement: An amazing single take. We challenge you to take your eyes off Effie Wu.

Night Sweat

Siegfried A. Fruhauf, Austria 2008

Experimental, 9:40 mins, without dialogue

Jury Statement: An unsettling study of light and darkness. Using the limitations of the medium to create something entirely cinematic.

Yours Truly

Osbert Parker, England 2008

Animation, 8:00 mins, English

Le Grand Content (The Big Contentment)

Clemens Kogler & Karo Szmit, Austtria 2007

Experimental, 3:57 mins, English

Jury Statement: An unlucky hero who ends up committing a great crime against the love of his life. Director Reto Caffi follows his characters in an extremely precise and sensitive manner. The powerful performance and the mature realisation result in an impressive film, emotionally enthralling and captivating until the very end.

Kopfgeburtenkontrolle (Brainbirth Control)

Jan Riesenbeck, Germany 2007

Fiction, 9:15 mins, German with English ST

Jury statement: A breathtaking and highly amusing reflection on today’s rhythm of life, accelerated to the point of absurdity. Self-deprecating and poignant.

Morbus Bechterew

Lola Randl & Rainer Egger, Germany/Austria 2007

Ficition, 11:00 mins, German with English ST

Jury statement: Narrated in a light tone and so closely observed the viewer can hardly distinguish performance from real life. A charming character portrait and a study of the art of running circles around oneself.

Auf der Strecke (On the Line)

Reto Caffi, Germany/Switzerland 2007

Ficiton, 29:45 mins, Swiss/German with English/French ST

Jury statement: A common occurrence: somebody loses his job. “Illusion” traces the resultant loss of control and the slow sinking into loneliness in a poetic and moving style. The nuanced directing and a brilliant leading actress light up the screen and give this film a special sparkle.

Die schiefe Bahn (The Rat Train Robbery)

Kathrin Albers & Jim Lacy, Germany 2008

Animation, 8:56 mins, German with English ST

Da ist nichts (Nothing's there)

Markus Schaefer & René Schöttler, Germany 2008

Documentary Fiction, 3:03 mins, German

Jury statement: With sensitivity and compassion, but also with a great sense of humour, the film describes how one event brings together the most diverse residents of a building who had been complete strangers before. The young filmmaker from Romania and the brilliant actors involved manage to give extraordinary power to a simple story with a satirical view on society.

Jury statement: The jury was not only impressed by Barber’s unusual and dynamic painting technique, where cars drive through ‘puddles of paint’, but also the by the contrasting stillness of the camera. From a bird’s eye view, the audience observes a two-dimensional image gradually emerging, while the actual composition of the image is purely random. However, it is precisely this randomness that builds up the suspense with which the spectators follow the development of the image. An entertaining document of artistic design truly in the tradition of action painting, in this case automotive action painting.

Jury statement: The world is in ruins, and it’s being put back together, but in a most unconventional way. “Rauschen und Brausen I” takes fragments of reality and reassembles them in a fascinating way to form a seemingly unending jigsaw puzzle. The score’s electronic white noise accompanies these images of “rebuilding”, while counteracting them at the same time. The film may not manage to see the rigour of its formal approach through to the very end, but it remains a brilliant example for a dialectical arrangement of image and music.

Jury statement: A lot of pills are popped in this film, but this does not result in colourful visions. The painful end to four young people’s dirty weekend is presented in stark black-and-white images, and this bitter outcome is anticipated in a very clever and unobtrusive way in the score’s monochrome cascades of sound. The monotony of the rhythms lends a disturbingly subdued hue to the characters’ ecstasy. “The Passage” is an example of great narrative cinema in the short format and excellently proves that music can be used as a narrative element in its own right.

Petzolds Pfeifen (Petzold´s Whistle)

Olaf Held, Germany 2008

Fiction, 5:33 mins, without dialogue

Jury statement: What starts off as a debilitating background noise is transformed into a study in techno in a workman’s head. An amusing and illuminating little film about how sound does not only shape music, but can also produce images.

Trabalenguas para ma casa vaciá (Word Puzzle for an Empty House)

Gabriel Herrera Torres, Mexico 2008

Fiction, 12:15 mins, without dialogue

Jury statement: This film impressively presents a 90-year old man’s living space as an extension of his own body. The ingeniously thought through score made up of music by Mozart, Ligeti and Berio deconstructed by scraping, shoving and shuffling noises creates a very organic overall impression and a portrait of life itself.

Jury statement: We chose the film for its realism, it was the only film that could happen like that in reality, it was emotionally good and fascinating. The actors were good and courageous. The film was exciting and full of twists and turns. ‚Great Travellers’ tells us about cooperation, friendship, fun; but also about feeling homesick and the anxiety of not coming back home.

The viewer was really able to get into the film, it was as if we were sleeping in that dark forest ourselves. The characters seemed to be extraordinarily real, fancy and creative. The score was adventurous and fit in naturally; sometimes you get scared when going through adventures, too. ‚Great Travellers’ was simply the best, the most original, including courageous actors, scary scenes and a happy ending.

Jury statement: The winning film touched us deeply. Even before getting to know the title the film creates a suspenseful, mysterious and depressing atmosphere. With its very first pictures the film plays with the audience’s expectations and delivers a suprising turning point. Our favourite is a very well done short film which is artistically and emotionally convincing in dealing with loss, death, guilt, and mourning. The most important factors for our decision are the wonderful and talented actors and the intense pictures. The plot deals with the development of Hugo, the main character, who is tortured by feelings of guilt. When returning to the lake where his brother died he learns how to fight those feelings. This trip indicates the impressive highlight of the film when reality and fiction are being mixed up. The story is exciting, visionary and intense and we would love to see more of it!

1st place Endowed with EUR 300,-

Eene, meene, Miste ...

Milena Glück, Germany 2008

Fiction, 4:00 mins

Jury statement: We think that the competition’s topic ‚one’s favourite place’, has been shown incomparably well and sensitively. We consider the idea of showing a dog’s favourite place to be entertaining, surprising and exciting. We would especially like to mention the film’s profoundly professional visuals and editing, both instantly drawing the viewer in. The camera does not only follow the dog and imitates its movements, but literally let’s us see the world through its eyes. Also, the film tells a whole story despite of being a short film.

2nd place Endowed EUR 200,-

Der Lieblingsplatz

Jonathan Schaller, Germany 2008

Fiction, 5:00 mins

Jury statement: As the second best film of Mo and Friese’s ‚Give me 5!’ competition we chose "Der Lieblingsplatz" by Jonathan Schaller. His film inspired us due to its surprising wit, good score and exciting turns. We have perceived the film as being intense, suspenseful and manifold. Therefore, we would like to emphasize the skillful use of the genuine cinematic way of showing memories: In a furious looking-back-black-and-white-scene, the main actresses reflect their experiences with the older boys trying to occupy their favourite climbing tree. Besides, we liked how the girls dealt with the situation because we think this could encourage people to be more self-confident!

3rd place Endowed with EUR 100,-

2050 – Schulausflug ins All

Leonie Stegmüller (AGMultimedia Nördlingen), Germany 2007

Animation, 4:39 mins

Jury statement: As the third winner for Mo and Friese’s ‚Give me 5!’ competition we would like to elect '2050 – Schulausflug ins All’ by Leonie Stegmüller and the AG Multimedia Nördlingen. The film takes us on a journey to extraordinary places in outer space. According to the filmmakers, favourite places are to be found in one’s dreams. We, the jury, agreed that the directors managed to realize the topic in a laudably surprising, modern and visionary way. We find it worth mentioning that this fantasic journey is even framed by an own story. Also, we are fond of mentioning the film’s team effort and skills. ‚2050 – Schulausflug ins All’ is also ahead of its time regarding technical aspects: we really liked the drawings and also found the animation utterly creative.